Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival

Here, participants will celebrate the “One World” theme of this year’s festival with two full days of live music, celebrity appearances (including Bill Nye and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk), a green car show and much, much more.

A legacy of environmentalism
In 1969, a devastating oil spill off Santa Barbara’s coast shocked Californians into action. Sen. Gaylord Nelson was one of those stunned by the horrific images. A visit to the area after the spill convinced him something had to be done. The inaugural Earth Day in 1970 was the result.

The Community Environmental Council was also born that year. Not only is the organization the host of Santa Barbara’s annual festival, it is also one of the greatest environmental groups in the country, offering healthy, community solutions to issues like clean energy and eco-friendly transportation.

Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival is carefully designed with sustainability in mind. The CEC reported on the event’s official site that more than 90 percent of all festival waste is diverted from the landfill every year. Plastic consumption is also way down with the promotion of reusable, compostable cups and a host of water stations.

It gets even better though. Every vendor at the food court – providing menus for preferences like vegan, vegetarian, paleo and others – sells products that are organic and locally grown. Beer and wine venders follow the same vein, with an array of local brews and vintages.